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Here's how to bring it in from the cold.

When the Equifax data breach was revealed last fall, you may have followed the advice of experts and frozen your credit. A freeze is the best way to keep your personal data from being used to open fraudulent credit accounts.

But it can also be an inconvenience: A freeze means no one can access your credit data, so you are likely to be denied things that require a credit check. Most people know their credit will be checked if they apply for a loan or credit card. But other things can trigger one, too, as some people found out when they tried to sign up for Obamacare last fall.